What is 3D design?
3D design uses computer-aided design software for modeling and technical documentation. It is used by designers and engineers to model and visualize real-world products and elements to study and optimize its design before it goes into the manufacturing process. What traditionally was done using manual drafting can now be replaced with CAD software connected seamlessly with emerging technologies to that allow designers and engineers to iterate faster on designs, reduce costs by forgoing costing prototyping costs and materials waste and improve overall product quality.
Types of 3D design
3D modeling using 3D CAD
3D product design is the creation of a product in a virtual environment in which it has three dimensions (height, width, and depth). The result is a digital prototype of your product, one you can explore in detail and run further studies on.
Generative design
AI-driven generative design from Creo automatically allows you to quickly produce solutions optimized for your loads and constraints, using traditional and additive manufacturing methods.
CAM
Computer Aided Manufacturing software like Creo NC and Tool Design solutions give you everything you need to achieve the highest quality, highest precision machining in the fastest possible time. Now you can handle every aspect of the machine process from mold/cast design and advanced NC to 3D simulation and verification.
3D design case studies
Parametric and freestyle surfacing in Creo
Surfacing lets you create and manipulate surfaces and curves on a model. It also enables you to manipulate curve tangents directly on the screen.
Use the Surfacing area of Help to learn about creating, changing, and manipulating surfaces. Surfacing Help shows you how to use surfacing applications to work with the curves and surfaces of parametric, nonparametric, and imported models. In addition, you will learn how to alter the form and shape of curves, quilts, facets, and solids by transforming, scaling, rotating, stretching, tapering, bending, or twisting the geometry.
Here are some of the Surfacing modules:
- Technical Surfacing
- Creo Interactive Surface Design (Style)
- Creo Reverse Engineering (Restyle)
- Facet Modeling
- Scan Tools
- Warp
- Freestyle
3D product design is the creation of a product in a virtual environment in which it has three dimensions (height, width, and depth). The result is a digital prototype of your product, one you can explore in detail. Without digital prototyping, you’d need to use more budget-vaporizing physical prototypes, watch time slip away, and get to market later with a product that might not be optimized. 3D design makes your life as a product designer easier and faster, allowing you to devote more time and energy to optimizing your product.
The vast list of capabilities that support the 3D design process include:
Intelligent fastener design
Automate the creation of holes and assembly fasteners, gain access to standard libraries (ANSI, DIN, JIS), utilize the integrated web-based component catalog and download predefined parts and symbols using the J-Link Programmatic Interface.
Piping and cabling design
Utilize full routing capabilities including automated ribbon cabling, specification driven design, auto-routing, speed design, and adherence to design rules and schematic logic. Furthermore, get associative harness manufacturing capabilities and automatic creation of supporting documentation.
Sheet metal design
Easily create walls, bends, punches, flanges, forms, and reliefs using the streamlined user interact. Automatically generate flat patterns from 3D geometry, dynamically preview formed and flattened sheetmetal designs simultaneously, and easily convert solid parts to sheetmetal.
Design optimization
Wouldn’t it be great if your computer-aided design software automatically determined the best design for you? Save time and effort with Creo Behavioral Modeling Extension (BMX).
Structural framework and weld design
Conduct standard linear static analysis on parts and assemblies. Utilize the fast, automatic meshing, solution convergence, and a comprehensive customizable materials library.
Direct modeling (flexible modeling)
Make Creo data changes—even to sheet metal—regardless of design intent. Recognize rounds, chamfers, patterns, symmetry on imported geometry, and create or recreate design intent and record edits as features.
Reverse engineering
With Creo Reverse Engineering Extension (REX), you can easily create or recreate the electronic 3D CAD model of your physical product, without spending an enormous amount of time, effort. or money.
Top-down design
Creo AAX is the answer for companies that are serious about concurrent engineering. Using the extension’s top-down design tools, it’s easy to plan out the skeleton of an assembly so that designers can then use it to create individual components in the context of the overall structure.